


sometimes it takes three (to tango)

by hlundqvists



Category: Hockey RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Carolina Hurricanes, Established Relationship, Eventual Threesome, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-01-20
Updated: 2015-01-20
Packaged: 2018-03-08 08:04:17
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,071
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3201710
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hlundqvists/pseuds/hlundqvists
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <i>Jeff smiles wide, the mental image of himself and Elias gracefully moving across the dance floor together in their tuxedos making his chest feel tight. </i>
</p><p> <i>“I guess we need to find lessons somewhere.”</i></p><p>or, an AU in which Jeff (a fourth grade teacher) and Elias (still a forward for the Hurricanes) are getting married and learn how to dance from Eric Staal (a dance instructor) and inevitably fall for him.</p>
            </blockquote>





	sometimes it takes three (to tango)

**Author's Note:**

  * For [ifonlynotnever](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ifonlynotnever/gifts).



> This was inspired by [this post](http://achrestomathy.tumblr.com/post/102333017805/ot3-au-ideas) on tumblr, specifically this prompt: _"Ballroom Dancing AU: Pair of characters with busy schedules have to take dance lessons separately to learn a dance for their wedding, and they both fall in love with their dance instructor."_
> 
> I'm not sure how many chapters this will have just yet, but please enjoy. (I hope you do.)
> 
> Shoutout to Casi for checking this over for me! Any errors left are all on me, sorry!

“Do you even know how to dance?”

Jeff is surprised by the suddenness of the question, a slow smile breaking out over his face as he traces his fingers lightly up Elias’ spine. 

“No, not really. Do you?”

Elias snorts a laugh, tucking his face against Jeff’s neck.

“I know how to play hockey. And love you. That’s all my skills.”

Jeff laughs, planting a kiss to the top of Elias’ head and pulls the blankets closer around them.

“Mm, all I know how to do is teach kids and love you right back.” He keeps tracing a finger over the knobs of Elias’ spine, enjoying the way the touch makes Elias press closer and grip Jeff’s hip tightly. “Why the sudden interest in my ability to dance?”

Elias presses a smile to Jeff’s neck, followed by a soft kiss that’s mixed in with a gentle bite. “For the wedding. We have to dance, ja? It’s tradition.”

Jeff smiles wide, the mental image of himself and Elias gracefully moving across the dance floor together in their tuxedos making his chest feel tight. 

“I guess we need to find lessons somewhere.”

//

It’s going to be impossible for them to be able to take the lessons together. Jeff knows this going into the search for dance lessons and he doesn’t hold it against Elias. They’re on different work schedules; Jeff with his teaching, Elias with his ever busy hockey schedule and road trips with the Carolina Hurricanes.

Elias looks a bit guilty when Jeff finally finds a place they can go for lessons, pointing out that the instructor does both day and night classes.

“You could go during the days after practices and I can go at night after classes? The lessons are only an hour so, it’s not that bad. We’ll still be able to have quick dinners together.”  
The longer Jeff goes on, the more guilty Elias looks and it makes Jeff want to laugh while also causing his chest to clench. He reaches out for Elias’ hand, tangling their fingers together and squeezes.

“Hey, what’s wrong?”

Elias frowns, rubbing his thumb over Jeff’s knuckles.

“I should be there with you. If I can’t be at dance with you, how will I be a good husband?”

Jeff bites his lip, squeezing Elias’ hand.

“Babe, I know you’ve got an unusual schedule. I knew that the first time you asked me out, I knew that when I told you I love you, I knew that when you asked me to marry you. Us having to take separate dance lessons isn’t that big of a deal,” Jeff squeezes Elias’ hand again, “and we can just surprise each other at the wedding with our new dance moves, eh? It’ll be fun.”

He leans in to kiss Elias’ cheek, feeling at ease when Elias smiles and nods, turning to kiss Jeff full on the lips.

“I’ll be better than you.”

Jeff grins wide, dimples showing and Elias kisses him again.

“Yeah, yeah, we’ll see who can learn better from this,” Jeff has to glance at the laptop screen to double check the instructor’s name, “Eric Staal. Lessons start next week, babe. You better start prepping now.”

//

A week later and it’s time for their first lessons. Elias is nervous, chewing his lip the entire way to the dance studio. It’s not too far a drive from the rink - a fact that he’s grateful for. He texts Jeff when he gets there, just to let him know and because, well, he’s _nervous_. 

This is something entirely new for him and he hasn’t done much without Jeff for the past year and a half. It feels strange to go somewhere and not have Jeff at his side to hold onto, to ground his nerves. 

His phone buzzes in his hand and the text back from Jeff makes him smile, eases him a little.

_good luck babe!!! ull do gr8 ilu xoxoxo_

He taps out a quick reply - _gonna be better than u boo_ \- before silencing and pocketing his phone. He may be young but he knows better than to be rude.

Heading into the studio immediately makes him feel uneasy again. The room is wide, full length mirrors on one side, polished wood floor. There’s a slight chill to the air but it isn’t _too_ bad. What makes Elias pause is the number of couples that are there; talking to each other, some holding hands and others laughing and swaying together while waiting for the instructor.

Watching them all makes Elias feel awkward, like he shouldn’t be there and he considers walking back out but then there’s a steady hand - big, _strong_ \- pressing to his shoulder, making him jump slightly.

“Hey, sorry to startle you. Are you here for the ballroom lessons?”

Elias turns to look at the stranger who just spoke - the stranger who still has his very big and very strong hand on Elias’ shoulder - and nods. There’s a silence that drags as Elias just _looks _at the man. He’s got a lean look to him while still appearing strong, jawline prominent and lips so red but pressed together in a way that says he’s not someone who puts up with too much nonsense. He looks almost cold, but there’s _warmth_ spreading from his hand through Elias’ shirt.__

__It finally hits Elias that the man is still waiting for an answer, so he replies while stuttering a bit over his words._ _

__“Y-yes, I’m here for-- to learn dance. For my Jeff.”_ _

__The man is tall - he’s got a few inches on Elias - and it’s a strange feeling for Elias to have to look _up_ at someone in such close proximity to him. His answer seems to please the man because he’s smiling now, - and does that smile completely change his face, his eyes crinkling a bit at the corners in a similar way to Jeff’s - giving Elias’ shoulder a light squeeze before he’s stepping away._ _

__“Awesome, cool. Looks like everyone’s here now.”_ _

__The man steps away and Elias watches him, brow furrowed and shoulder suddenly feeling very cold; part of him still wants to turn and run from here, but he can’t let Jeff down. He just can’t._ _

__He watches as the man steps towards the front of the group, clapping his hands together to call for attention._ _

__“Good morning, everyone. Hi. I’m Eric Staal, I’ll be your instructor for this course.”_ _

__Elias swallows thickly, feeling a sense of impending doom. He can’t leave now. He really, really can’t. He’s trapped._ _

__Trapped by his promise to Jeff and by his alarming need to see Eric dance._ _

__It’s a little worrisome._ _

__//_ _

__Elias was right to be worried._ _

__Being the only person there _not_ a part of a couple meant that he got picked by Eric to help _demonstrate_ to the class. Standing in front of a room of strangers and being expected to help show them how to dance when hardly being able to dance yourself was a bit terrifying and Elias could only hope that no one in the class knew who he was or took video to post on the internet._ _

__His nervousness seems to be rolling off him in waves. Eric smiles at him, bracing his hands on Elias’ shoulders in a comforting weight._ _

__“You’ll be fine. This will be fun, you’ll see.”_ _

__Elias wants to disagree but that’d be _rude_ , so he just huffs a little and mutters, “Oh, yes, show me the fun.”_ _

__He doesn’t expect Eric to just grab his hands and place them in the proper positions from him; one hand on Eric’s shoulder, the other held up by Eric’s hand. Eric braces his own hand against Elias’ hip, gently squeezing and smiling down at him._ _

__“Just follow my lead. It’s easy.”_ _

__And scarily enough, it is._ _

__It’s so easy for Elias to let Eric take control and lead him, saying the steps they need to take out loud for the class to hear, moving his feet effortlessly and pulling Elias along with him. Elias just goes pliant, follows where Eric leads, and tries very hard to not step on Eric’s toes._ _

__He trips up once, stumbling a bit but Eric is there to brace him and keep holding him up. A moment of temptation arises, Elias wanting to bury his face against Eric’s chest but he doesn’t. He can’t. He’s here to learn for Jeff; for the person he’s going to be marrying and spending the rest of his years with._ _

__Suddenly Eric’s touch seems to burn and Elias breaks free, cheeks red and eyes downcast._ _

__“Sorry. S-sorry, I’m not good at this.”_ _

__Eric doesn’t seem upset by this turn of events. He just smiles and claps Elias’ on the shoulder and says, “For your first time, that was pretty good”, then he’s turning to the class to direct them in trying to recreate the same moves that he and Elias just did._ _

__He takes the chance to glance at his phone, checking the time and-- _yes_ , there’s only twenty minutes left._ _

__He can get through this without embarrassing himself further. He can._ _

__(He hopes.)_ _

__(Those hopes are dashed and crushed to pieces when Eric reapproaches him, grin on his face, and asks so casually for another dance.)_ _

__//_ _

__By the time Elias gets home, Jeff is already there and getting dinner ready. They have an hour and a half before Elias needs to leave for a game, Jeff for his first dance lesson._ _

__For a moment, Elias just watches Jeff putter around the kitchen, feeling so very fond and knowing that the emotions he feels are painted clearly on his face. Jeff smiles at him, all wide and dimpled, and Elias steps over to crowd Jeff against the counter while kissing him firmly._ _

__Jeff makes a content little _hmm_ noise against Elias’ lips, fingers clutching the front of Elias’ shirt as he presses back into the kiss._ _

__“Mm, hey, baby. How was the lesson?”_ _

__Elias would prefer to keep kissing Jeff right now rather than talk._ _

__“It was fine. Now hush.”_ _

__He grins, capturing Jeff’s lips in another kiss and feels a minuscule amount of victory as Jeff just goes pliant against him, arms circling around his neck to draw him in closer. He’s always loved this - kissing Jeff, touching Jeff. The way that Jeff responds to him, pressing into each touch and seeking more of every kiss was simply lovely and to be the one to draw such noises from Jeff’s lips made Elias feel like he could conquer the world._ _

__He holds onto Jeff for another few minutes, just kissing him slowly until they both break away completely breathless. Jeff’s cheeks have turned pink, eyes bright and Elias loves him so much, has to tell him so between a few more kisses._ _

__Jeff laughs, meeting each kiss with a wide smile and gives Elias’ hair a gentle tug._ _

__“I love you, too, babe. Come on, let’s eat dinner before it gets cold.”_ _

__//_ _

__They rush through dinner, unable to keep from knocking their feet together under the table and eventually give up on clearing their plates to instead make out some more._ _

__There’s fifteen minutes left before either of them has to leave; Elias keeping close watch on the clock as he pushes Jeff down onto the couch in the living room and starts to pull his pants off. Jeff raises his hips easily, letting Elias slide his pants and boxers down to mid-thigh and lets out a low moan as Elias swallows his dick down._ _

__“F- _fuck_.”_ _

__Elias hums, wrapping a hand around the base of Jeff’s dick and focuses on sucking at the tip for a moment, tongue pressing to his slit the way he knows Jeff likes. He’s rewarded with Jeff whimpering, hips bucking up to try and get further into Elias’ mouth._ _

__There isn’t time for teasing right now so Elias gives Jeff what he’s seeking. He takes Jeff into his mouth, not stopping until his nose is pressed to the finely coarse hair of Jeff’s pubes and the head of Jeff’s dick is hitting the back of his throat. He swallows a few times, feeding off of the way Jeff is losing it under his mouth._ _

__Jeff’s hands are curled tightly in Elias’ hair, tugging hard and his hips are moving so minutely now; gentle little rockings to push just a bit against the back of Elias’ throat and Elias takes it all. His eyes are watering, jaw starting to ache but all of that is worth it for the way Jeff sounds right now; loud whimpers delving off into louder moans, broken whispers of Elias’ name over and over._ _

__“B-babe, I’m-- I’m close.”_ _

__Elias hums and starts to move his head, pulling off a bit before taking Jeff back into his mouth all the way. He works his tongue along the underside of Jeff’s dick, tracing over the vein there and just keeps humming and sucking, swallowing down Jeff until Jeff lets out a broken cry and he’s coming hard down Elias’ throat._ _

__Elias swallows it all, a few drops of come slipping past his lips but he doesn’t care. He pulls off, grinning up at Jeff and Jeff just looks so _beautiful_. He always does after he comes; cheeks so red, eyes bright and relaxed, body totally pliant and the way he smiles so lazily but with a hint of mischief to it too._ _

__It doesn’t take long for Jeff to pull Elias up onto the couch, licking in Elias’ mouth and working a hand into his pants. Elias moans, clutching at Jeff’s shoulders and rocks into his touch, already nearly at the brink just from having had Jeff’s dick in his mouth._ _

__Jeff breaks the kiss, his hand curling tightly around Elias’ dick, stroking fast and dirty in the way that Elias craves._ _

__“Yeah, fuck, come on, babe, wanna see you come.”_ _

__Jeff’s voice is so low, so husky and it sends shivers down Elias’ spine. He presses his face to Jeff’s shoulder, rocking his hips forward and it only takes a few more strokes of Jeff’s thumb over the head of his cock to make him come with a broken whine._ _

__Jeff strokes him through it, peppering his face with kisses and Elias hums, feeling so very loose and content._ _

__Far too soon for his liking, Jeff is pulling his hand out and licking it clean. Elias groans, tucking himself closer to Jeff’s side._ _

__“Let’s stay here forever.”_ _

__Jeff laughs, shifting a bit to pull his pants back up and zipper them back up._ _

__“You know I'd love that, but you’ve got a game to get to and I have a dance lesson.”_ _

__Elias grumbles, clinging onto Jeff for another minute before finally letting go and standing up. He offers Jeff a hand and tugs him up off the couch, pulling him in for a slow and sweet kiss._ _

__“Mm, I’ll win it for you.”_ _

__Jeff giggles, pressing a kiss to Elias’ nose._ _

__“And I’ll learn to be the best dancer ever for you.”_ _

__Elias feels a sense of foreboding then, remembering the way Eric’s hands had felt pressed to his back during the lesson and he pulls Jeff closer, hugging him far tighter than necessary. Jeff doesn’t complain. He just hugs Elias back, making a confused noise and kisses Elias’ neck._ _

__“Everything okay, Eli?”_ _

__Elias has to close his eyes, breathe in the scent of Jeff to calm himself before he’s able to let go and smile fondly._ _

__“Ja. I just love you a lot.”_ _

__Jeff blushes, as he always does when Elias says those words, and steals a quick kiss._ _

__“I love you a lot, too.”_ _

__//_ _

__The night classes are always more full than the day classes. Eric expects that, but what he doesn’t expect is for there to be another single in a class again today. He watches the young man - christ, he looks just as young as the kid from earlier today - hang around at the back of the studio, seeming to feel as out of place as he looks._ _

__Eric frowns a little. Why would someone so young be here on their own? He just doesn’t get it. Kids don’t really care to learn ballroom dance. Not that he can complain; the more people in the class, the more money he gets. Not that it’s a lot of money to begin with._ _

__Still, he never likes to see someone looking so alone in one of his classes so he takes the time to approach the young man like he did earlier. He doesn’t startle the man, which will probably go a long way in making him easier to talk to._ _

__“Hey, are you here alone?”_ _

__The kid -- _man_ , very young but still a _man_ \- peers up at him, smiling slowly and gives a small nod of his head._ _

__“Yeah, my fiancé and I have different schedules so…” He trails off, hands sliding into his pockets as he looks at Eric. “What about you?”_ _

__Eric’s distracted momentarily by the man’s dimples - how can someone have dimples like that? - before he’s shaking his head, answering._ _

__“I’m Eric. Eric Staal. I teach this class.”_ _

__He holds out a hand to the man with a polite smile. His hand is taken for a firm shake, surprisingly firm and strong._ _

__“Nice to meet you, Eric. I’m Jeff Skinner.”_ _

__Eric blinks, holding onto the handshake for a second too long. A moment from earlier that day comes crashing back to him; the kid from the day class - Elias? yeah, Elias - , all shy and cute smiles and sweet blushes had told Eric he was learning to dance “for my Jeff”. He lets go of Jeff’s hand quickly then._ _

__“You’re not-- Are you Elias’ Jeff?”_ _

__Jeff looks surprised by the question, the faintest of blushes starting to spread on his cheek._ _

__“Uh, yeah, that’s me. He was here earlier? I guess you talked to him.”_ _

__Eric smiles. “I talked to him, yeah. And I danced with him.”_ _

__Jeff grins widely at that, a laugh bubbling up from his throat._ _

__“Oh, yeah? How was he? Is he going to step on my toes at our wedding?”_ _

__God, Jeff is so young. So is Elias. It hits Eric hard that these two kids have found apparent love and are getting married and he’s still alone and teaching godforsaken _dance_. _ _

__“I think you’ll be safe from any crushed toes. The better question is, will _he_?”_ _

__Jeff laughs again at that, so bright and all dimples, and Eric feels a familiar fluttering in his chest that he had felt earlier when watching Elias stumble and blush._ _

__“I don’t know. I guess we’re going to find out.”_ _

__Eric swallows, forcing himself to look away from Jeff’s smile._ _

__“Yeah, I guess we will.”_ _

__//_ _

__Of course it would turn out that Jeff was slightly better at dancing than Elias. The few years of figure skating that he did in his childhood certainly was helpful for him to know how to move his body and where to move it when Eric directed._ _

__He wasn’t as nervous as Elias had been when Eric asked him to demonstrate for the class. Being a teacher to young children who said and did countless embarrassing things had been working well to harden Jeff’s self-embarrassment from boiling to the surface._ _

__It’s easy for him to move into the correct position, to rest a hand on Eric’s shoulder and grip Eric’s left hand with his right. He prides himself on being able to still move easily with slight grace, not allowing his feet to drag as he moves with Eric._ _

__It’s almost effortless and Eric’s hands are so warm and Jeff feels so oddly relaxed. He thought he would be tense, keyed up while having to practice dancing with a stranger but there’s something about Eric that is just…. welcoming and calming._ _

__By the time Eric brings him to the end of the dance, the entire class breaks out into applause and Jeff laughs brightly, taking a mock bow with Eric. He watches as Eric moves away, starting to help others copy the same moves._ _

__He pulls out his phone to quickly check for the score of the game and beams widely when he sees the Hurricanes are leading with a goal. He must look happy enough to give away the fact that he’s got something on phone screen relating to Elias, because Eric is suddenly back at his side and teasingly rumbles out, “Checking up with the future husband?”_ _

__Jeff is startled, gripping onto his phone tightly and breaks out into a laugh._ _

__“Yeah, Y-yeah. Ha, just checking the score.” He holds the phone up for Eric to see, still smiling widely. “They’re winning.”_ _

__Eric grins, glancing at the screen before looking at Jeff. “Ah, I thought he looked familiar to me. I didn’t realize he was Elias _Lindholm_.”_ _

__Jeff knows he looks proud; he always does when someone talks about Elias as a hockey player in front of him. He just-- He’s so very proud of all the strides Elias has made since his career started._ _

__“Yeah, that’s my future husband.”_ _

__Eric smiles again, but there seems to be some tension to it now. It’s a tension that makes Jeff frown a little, wonder if he’s done something wrong._ _

__He doesn’t have much time to think on it because Eric is taking him by the hand and pulling him to the front of the class once again._ _

__“Alright, let’s go over that one more time.”_ _

__//_ _

__Jeff gets home from his dance lesson far before Elias does from the game. He takes a shower, puts on some pajama pants and an old t-shirt of Elias’, then grabs his laptop and starts making lesson plans for his fourth grade classes for the next week._ _

__It holds him over until Elias comes home; smile bright from the win but looking tired from the exertion of the day. Jeff just watches, waiting as Elias strips out of his game day suit and pulls on a pair of boxers before crawling into bed next to Jeff._ _

__Carefully putting his laptop aside, Jeff slips down to curl up against Elias, kissing him softly._ _

__“Congratulations on the win, babe.”_ _

__Elias makes a soft, contented noise and brushes his lips over Jeff’s chin._ _

__“Thank you. How was dance?”_ _

__Jeff smiles a little, moving his fingers lightly over Elias’ cheek._ _

__“It was good. Eric is-- He’s not what I expected.”_ _

__Elias’ lips press together at that, a slight furrow forming between his brows which Jeff quickly soothes with a kiss and brush of a thumb._ _

__“Ja. He’s….” Elias trails off, seeming to have to search his mind for the right words. “He’s different but nice. I think I like him?”_ _

__Jeff hums lightly, leaning in to kiss Elias again._ _

__“Yeah, I think I do too. He’s a good teacher.”_ _

__Elias shifts, reaching for the blankets to pull them up and over himself and Jeff, then plasters himself against Jeff; head tucked under Jeff’s chin, one arm wrapped protectively around Jeff’s waist and one leg pushed possessively between Jeff’s._ _

__“Mm. You’re the best teacher I know.”_ _

__Jeff smiles, fingers brushing through Elias’ hair to pet him gently. Any tension left from the day flows out of Elias at that touch, and Jeff can feel as sleep starts to pull Elias under._ _

__“Yeah, sure. We can agree to disagree on that.”_ _

__Elias just makes a grumbling noise of disagreement, his fingers tightening at Jeff’s hip. It’s not long before he falls asleep and Jeff is left alone with his thoughts._ _

__He can’t stop from thinking back on the dance lesson, of how warm Eric’s hands had made him feel and how easily dancing with Eric had been. It hits him then that he’s actually _eager_ for the next lesson and that sets off a wave of guilt inside him._ _

__He holds Elias tighter, mulling over the words they had just exchanged._ _

__Elias likes Eric, but….. in what way? Could he _like_ Eric?_ _

__Jeff sighs, clearing his mind and kisses the top of Elias’ head._ _

__He can’t have thoughts like that. There’s no possible way that Elias could have meant it like that. Besides, why should Jeff let his eyes wander when he has someone so utterly perfect for himself already?_ _

__He has Elias and Elias has him and that’s all they need._ _

__(But then why does a part of his chest feel so empty?)_ _


End file.
